Greece
Greece (officially the Hellenic Republic) is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkans Peninsula. The country has borders with Albania, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the east. Modern Greece traces its roots to the civilization of Ancient Greece, generally considered to be the cradle of Western civilization. As such, it is often said to be the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, the Olympic Games, Western literature and historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and Western drama, including both tragedy and comedy. Greece aligned with the Entente during World War I. During World War II, Greece joined the Allied Forces, but was invaded and occupied by the Axis Powers in 1941. Literary comment Harry Turtledove makes some use of modern Greece. However, far more of his stories are set in Ancient Greece. Information for stories set in Greece before AD 500 will be found on that page. Greece in The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump Around 1990, a shipment of lemons from Greece (known to the natives as Ellas) to America was imperfectly exorcised, allowing small vegetable vampires to slip into the country.The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump, p. 72. Greece in Crosstime Traffic The Koine variety of Greek was still a major language in one of the alternates where the Crosstime Traffic company maintained a secret presence. Jeremy Solters knew people who learned Koine via implants in order to travel to that timeline.Gunpowder Empire, p. 9. In the home timeline itself, Koine Greek had developed in the Hellenistic period and was still spoken in Roman Empire times, but was then superseded by later varieties of Greek. Greece in "The Emperor's Return" On 7 June 2003, the Socialist government of Greece turned on its former NATO ally, Turkey, and joined the Soviet Union in attacking Turkey. Greece demanded the return of Constantinople, now the city of Istanbul. The city fell to the Greek and Soviet forces three days later. Greece in ''In the Presence of Mine Enemies'' Greece fell to Italy during World War II, and became part of the Italian Empire. Greece in ''Joe Steele'' Greece was invaded by Italy early in World War II. When that invasion floundered, Germany sent troops into Greece to aid the Italians in 1941.''Joe Steele'', pg. 234, HC. At the 1943 Basra Conference, Prime Minister Winston Churchill blocked Soviet leader Leon Trotsky's plans to occupy Greece by threatening a Royal Navy bombardment of any Red Army positions in Greece if necessary. Trotsky yielded, and Greece fell under British influence after the war.Ibid., pg. 283. Greece in "A Late Symmer Night's Battle" A tribe of kobolds from Germany worked a silver mine in northern Greece, before being evicted by humans. They then turned their eyes to the Kingdom of Faerie. Greece in "Les Mortes d'Arthur" By the late 22nd century, Greece had merged with other Western European countries to form United Europe. As such, it had its autonomy reduced to something comparable to that of a state in the United States. Nevertheless, it continued to compete separately at the Olympics to keep its place of honour as the homeland of the Olympic ideal. It was able to send four athletes to Mimas, a moon of Saturn, for the Sixty-sixth Winter Games. The athletes' space suits were painted in the national colors of blue and white. Greece in Noninterference Greece was an autonomous area of United Earth, itself an autonomous Member Planet of the Federacy. Greeks had taken part in the great outward migration of humanity, settling the planets New Thessaly and Alexander, both of which kept a distinct Greek culture even after thousands of years. Greece in "Occupation Duty" The Ellenes, some of whom had colonized Syria, were distantly related to the Philistinians, whose ancestors migrated eastward from Crete, 3000 years prior. The two languages were recognized as being related, but were not mutually intelligible. There were some contacts between Ellenes and Philistinians, but they were not particularly tight. The Ellenes shared the Philistinians' dislike for the Moabites and extreme dislike for the Turks of Babylonia, but they lacked the oil wealth and were outnumbered three to one by the Turks, so the Philistinians could not take Ellene aid for granted in case of war.See e.g.: Atlantis and Other Places, pgs. 240-241, HC. Greece in Southern Victory Literary comment Throughout the series, various American characters are identified as being immigrants from Greece or the children thereof. However, the current status of Greece, including its affiliations, if any, during the Great War and the Second Great War, are never addressed. Greece in The War That Came Early Greece announced its neutrality when the Second World War broke out in October 1938. A Greek freighter carried various Czechoslovakian refugees from various points in Eastern Europe to France, including Vaclav Jezek.Hitler's War, pg. 129. Greece was able to maintain that neutrality up to the end of the war, which was waged in the Soviet Union to its north and in Egypt and Libya to its south but never came near to Greek territory. Greece in Worldwar Greece was conquered by Germany in 1941 (having previously defeated an Italian invasion at the outset of World War II) and absorbed into the [[Greater German Reich (Worldwar)|Greater German Reich]]. Many Greek refugees fled to Britain, which had sent troops to defend their country. Under the terms of the Peace of Cairo in 1944, Greece was recognized as German territory. References Category:Countries in Europe Category:Greece Greece Greece Category:Italian Empire (Alternate Timeline) Category:Ottoman Empire Category:Roman Empire Category:Greater German Reich (OTL) Category:Greater German Reich (Alternate Timeline) Category:Worldwar Greece Category:Noninterference Category:Crosstime Traffic Category:Former Countries (Fictional Work) Category:The War That Came Early Category:The Emperor's Return Category:Occupation Duty Category:Joe Steele Category:Southern Victory Category:NATO Members Category:The Case of the Toxic Spell Dump Category:A Late Symmer Night's Battle